Overview

The Launch: Equitable and Accelerated Pathways for All initiative was announced in February 2023 by the Education Strategy Group. The national initiative is developing college and career pathways that strive for every learner to have access to and succeed in high-quality and equitable pathways. Approaches include:

• Driving a national agenda for college and career pathways
• Working with state and local partnerships to expand access and equitable outcomes by tackling entrenched inequities in education and workforce systems
• Advancing pathways policies and strategies that help achieve greater scale and sustainability
• Seeding and growing next-generation models that will transform career pathways systems and dismantle entrenched barriers that perpetuate inequities in economic advancement

Launch includes two distinct cohorts—Impact and Innovation. Both cohorts represent leaders from across 11 states, including state education and workforce agencies, K-12 districts, postsecondary institutions, policymakers, and other intermediary partners.

Launch is harnessing the expertise of the five national partners and participating state and local leaders to elevate the levers that drive systems change — data, policy, funding, partnerships, and equity — and help state and local sites create equitable, sustainable systems that are built to last.

• Impact cohort sites: Colorado, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Washington
• Innovation cohort sites: Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Ohio, Illinois, Texas

Background

Despite the progress some states and communities have made in building high-quality career pathways, gaps in access and outcomes for different student groups persist. As a result, too few learners are earning credentials of value. This perpetuates economic inequity and the nation 's economy often lacks the well-prepared talent needed to thrive. This initiative is founded in the need for action and new, collaborative thinking about how to better connect more young people to meaningful opportunities.

Partners

ESG is partnering with four other national organizations in the pathways movement to simultaneously strengthen efforts to provide high-quality and equitable pathways at scale and push the field toward innovative strategies and solutions: Advance CTE - State Leaders Connecting Learning to Work; ExcelinEd; Jobs for the Future (JFF); New America

Six philanthropies support this initiative: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Bloomberg Philanthropies; Walton Family Foundation; Joyce Foundation; Annie E. Casey Foundation; Carnegie Corporation of New York

Resources

Press release (2/8/2023)

ESG blog

Launch website